A Calgary pastor says he is facing more jail time over his refusal to write an apology letter to a local librarian that he confronted about three years ago during a protest against drag queen story time for children.
The pastor, Derek Reimer, was previously arrested and charged for protesting library drag queen story times for children between 2023 and 2024. He was cleared of some of the charges, but an Alberta Court of King’s Bench tossed out the acquittal in July, ordering a retrial.
Reimer was found guilty of criminal harassment for posting on social media a video recording of a conversation he had with the manager of a Calgary library where a drag reading event was to take place. He had encouraged his supporters to contact the manager and express their opposition to the event, and included the name and work contact details of the librarian.
He told The Epoch Times that one of his house arrest conditions was to write the librarian an apology letter, something he said he cannot do in “good conscience.”
“I will not apologize to a library manager that’s hosting drag queen story hour that grooms and sexualizes children. That library manager needs to apologize to the children,” he said.
Reimer, who was self-represented, said he was seeking a variation of his house arrest order that would not require him to write the letter. He said he lost that case in court on Nov. 25.
Reimer said his conditions are required to be completed by Nov. 28, and if they are not, his parole officer will issue a breach and call the police, a warrant will be issued, and he will be arrested.
He said he was not sure how long he would be in jail this time, adding that his house arrest order expires on Dec. 23.
The Epoch Times attempted to reach the Crown prosecutor’s office but did not hear back by publication time.
Jail Time
The deadline comes about five months after he spent 62 days in jail for being found to have breached his court conditions by holding a prayer event outside the courthouse earlier this year.
At the time, his attorney Andrew MacKenzie said Reimer was attending court and was outside on the steps where a rally was being held prior to his hearing. He arrived about 90 minutes before his court time and participated in the rally with his supporters, which police say breached his conditions.
MacKenzie said that Reimer had no idea he was breaching the conditions, and said that “no reasonable person would think that would be a breach.”
Acquittal Overturned
In the recent decision that dismissed Reimer’s acquittal, Justice Nancy Carruthers said the judge who acquitted Reimer on the charges relating to his protest at Seton library made legal errors in his decision.
Reimer previously told The Epoch Times that the reversal of the acquittal effectively starts his legal process “all over again.”
MacKenzie said that Carruthers’s ruling was “extremely rare,” and called the decision “troubling.” He noted that the decision by Justice Allan Fradsham, who acquitted Reimer, had been cited by courts in seven provinces and more than 30 written decisions.
Reimer said the last few years have been a struggle, but that his faith gives him strength.
“I won’t deny that it has been challenging on my family and even on myself. But you know, as the scriptures talk about ‘think it not strange, these fiery trials which are here to try you,’” he said.
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